The Advent Dominion
Advent Dominion "Trust not in their appearance, trust only In their quest to supremacy in a time of great uncertain and their religious fanaticism of their God Adventos." - Chancellor Valance of the Federation The Advent are an ancient alien race whose vast empire expended the width and breath of the Adventos galaxy. Their empire was without equal, and they counted themselves masters of the stars. Milennia ago, the Advent Dominion was formed to unite the boundless power of their civilization and lead by the religious cult of Preah Adventos lead them to win the Purity Wars that ravaged their galaxy but secured the uncontested authority of the Dominion. Highly advanced and feared across the Cerberus galaxy, the Advent were responsible for some of the greatest events that would occur in Cerberus such as the dissolution of the Radama Federation at the end of the Great Galactic Conflict. They have since not returned in force, shadows of their former conquests teeters in the Cerberus galaxy... History The exact date of the founding of the Advent Dominion In Cerberus Historical Archives is unclear, however the way in which the Advent were united as a species is a well-teethe and hypothetical tale. What is known is that the Advent Dominion was the very embodiment of space-faring Imperialism that would rather conduct warfare to diplomacy, enslavement to peaceful co-existence. The First Dominion followed that political thinking, leading them to great heights and boundless prestige until the waning days of the Gemini Wars In the Cerberus Galaxy. Earlier in their history, the Advent were a culture built upon warring tribes. During this time, Advent legends tell of the first appearance of a mysterious figure on Preah Adventos, one of the many splintered Advent civilizations in the Galaxy and assumed such authority that this figure was proclaimed the first 'Primarch' of Preah Adventos and spoke of the importance of unity and understanding between all Advent. He described a vision of a powerful and unstoppable civilization, and as such Preah Adventos united behind the Primarch whom would later become the first 'official' head of the Advent Dominion during the Purity Wars of Adventos as the Hierarchy, a living being believed to be Adventos. The God that all Advent worshiped. The Advent Dominion soon expanded its borders though a series of so-called Sphere Expansions. The Dominion had gone though them during the Purity Wars until It controlled the Adventos Galaxy and secured Its uncontested authority. The phases were marked by Dominion military campaigns during which worlds were colonised, conquered, or sometimes eradicated such as the world of Ragnarok. On hundreds of idyllic planets seeded across the stars, the First Dominion pursued their labyrinth of order and control. The Hierarchy of the First Dominion would lead in the image of the Celestial Conclave, a gathering of the religious and military body to govern the Dominion and was responsible for many changes including the Dominion policy of the Purges that occured on Ragnarok and against the Gemini Empire they would later encounter that age later. However, those that would dread the Advent return to Cerberus are right to fear. For they have the power to destory entire star systems simply for it being 'divined' demanded from Adventos himself and butching entire civilizations to make examples of their Tyranny. Children of the Stars Over many ages the Advent ruled the Adventos Galaxy, undisputed masters of their own destiny. Such a position was their right, they thought, and their preeminence was beyond doubbt. In many ways, the Advent had good reason for such hubris, for no other race existed nor posed a serious threat to their wealth and stability for time immemorial. They were convinced they that no longer had anything to fear from the galaxy at large, and they may have been right, but the real danger came from within. The ancient race continued their glorious existence unaware of unwilling to ackowledge the tensions between numerous Advent parties, the tensions created specifically for their need to be in control and dominance. Descent into the Purity Wars The Purity Wars was the period in the early history of the Advent lasting from approximately ( - WIP - ) into the formation of the Advent Dominion, when the Advent of Preah Adventos were expending as it sought to bring all of Advent-settled space under the control of a single ruler, the Hierarchy of the Advent. The Purity Wars marked a brief era in Advent history of rebuilding, reunification, and rapid technological advancement following the regression of Advent into war-torn societies that were destroying themselves in petty affairs. It was a time when the Hierarchy of Adventos still lived in the conventional sense and lead His people in person. The Purity Wars was considered the turning point for Adventos, a golden age that would exist after the Wars ended by the Order and Stability of the First Dominion of Adventos. The Hierarchy of Adventos sought to unite all of Advent under one banner following the beginning of the Age of Strife, and end inter-advent conflict. Once united, the Hierarchy intended to begin the next stage of His great plan to ensure Advent domination of the Adventos galaxy, which he judged to be necessary if they were to survive. To carry out his vision and reunite all the scattered worlds of Advent beneath the single banner of the Dominion, the Hierarchy created the Sentinel Astartes, created from his own genes which ensured their complete dominance as the upper-class warrior elites in the Dominion and would lead the various forces of the Dominion in the final days of the Purity Wars, cutting down the numberless enemy ranks. The exact number of the Astartes is unknown due to they have never appeared in the Cerberus Galaxy. However, the need for more Sentinels via gene-seed organs and genetic flaws in many of the Sentinels would be one factor in bringing on the Great Crisis In the waning days of the First Dominion. During the Purity Wars, the technological and military advancement of the Advent was untold which was a factor in their conquest across the galaxy. The Dominion pride themselves on their advancements in technology over others during the War, flourished with no restrictions on technological expansion. The Dominion Crusade of Adventos was under the direct, personal command of the Hierarchy of Preah Adventos until the great victory won against Anorak and Ragnarok. After the defeat of the allied powers achieved a new high point for the Purity Wars, the Hierarchy retired to Preah Adventos to announce the formation of the First Advent Dominion and the uncontested authority it now holds over all Advents. The Hierarchy would name his favorite commander Cyloren, Primarch of the Sentinel Legion Celestis Bringers as the Primarch of the Advent Military, of the late-period of the Purity Wars and gave him authority to direct the War's progression as he saw fit, including the right to command all of his fellow comrades and their Legions of Sentinels. The Hierarchy established the Council of Adventos and the Dominion bureaucracy, forerunners of the later Imperialis of the High Templars of Adventos and the Astartes Administratum, to begin shifting the Dominion from his personal rule to a goverment that more closely served the needs of the Dominion's common people. The Great Scouring In the aftermath of the Gemini Wars, the First Dominion was a dismal, shattered thing. As the unity and grandeur of the Dominion had been all but destoryed by the flames of betrayal, so great swathes of the Dominion star-spanning realm had suffered a similar fate. The Vasari Gemini Empire was obliterated non the less, however as the Advent Forces that returned to the Home Galaxy from Cerberus via passage of an ancient cyran gateway. A scouring occured within the goverment, entire worlds were put to be purged as the Fleet turned on each other due to Advent that held resentment due to the Purity War saw their chance to break free and ultimately the flames of betrayal and discontent destoryed the Dominion and saw to the long-term silence of the Hierarchy, to whom now rests eternally in his fortress on Preah Adventos. Because of this, and the fact much of the Adventos galaxy would be burning for many rotations until the Advent Rebels were eradicated, this would serve as a crippling moment for this all occured as the Advent 8th Fleet lead by Cyloren continued to fight the Gemini Empire. Suffering serious setbacks due to the Vasari Black Knights and their Scourging of Advent controlled planets in the Cerberus Galaxy, however this proved to strengthen the resolve of the Advent as they set fire to the Vasari Homeworld, and oversaw the splintering of the Mighty Imperium while unaware that the Dominion had reduced itself to kin-slaying shortly thereafter. This was a period of monumental violence, of confusion and darkness. Though the newly founded Second Dominion fought to root out corruption and expose wrong-doers to the cold light of Dominon justice, the galaxy's scope and dark, shadowed reaches worked against them. With new betrayals and cries for vengence emerging daily, a great many hideous deeds went unseen. The ravaged Sentinel Legions were no expection to this, with many striving to cover up their own misdemeanours or exact their pound of duty to those who wronged them. The Sentinels followed their own agendas as the Wars of the Scouring gathered pace. Fighting continued for 150 years after the Scouring before the Traitor Forces were wholly destoryed or accepted back into the Dominion. Many Dominion worlds during the Scouring refused to commit forces to the Dominion or the Traitors and attempted to regain their independence. Such indecision was punished by Loyalist and Traitor forces alike. The Formation of the Second Advent Dominion After the Great Scouring had burnt out its hype and the fighting had stopped. The Leadership caste of the Dominion would use this time to hurrily reform into the 'Second' Dominion. The purpose of this was not to maintain centuries of oppression as they had practiced after the purity war but to suggest cooperation among the powers, each planet was given fair treatment and the purge policy was outlawed by the Conclave of the Second Dominion. For all Intents and purposes, the age of the second dominion was the golden era of the Advent Civilization. The Second Dominion was far less militaristic then the last, investing in improving the economy and technology advancement to ease tensions and let the world's run on a semi-formal fashion with little involvement from the Dominion. Many found this acceptable and so the Dominion for the greater part of its existence leading from the end of the Scouring to a century before the Great Galactic Wars of Cerberus. The Dominion honored it's commitment until it drifted back into what brought down the First enity, massive military buildup. The Dominion had discovered the Ord Radama Federation was the current state in power of the Cerberus Galaxy and believed itself threafened - this was of course a plot to give them an excuse to militarization of the Fleet and then result to imperialism in domestic affairs. When world's opposed this, they were destroyed by orbital bombardment to make am example of them. Primarch Na-Toth was in command before and during the Great Galactic Conflict and was responsible for making the mistake of allowing the Royal Advent Queen of Raganork leading the Dominion Effort against the Federation unsuspected of her new intentions however were unable to stop the mass succession of their military forces after the fall of Ord Radama and the end of a war, and the starting teethe of the Colonial Wars between Federation successor states. Notable advancements in the Second Dominion was the discovery and construction of Proto-Planets both in the Adventos Galaxy and in the Cerberus Galaxy. Constructed as paradise world's aswell as military staging points. Due to the amount of world's render useless and the continued needs of the people social requirement. The Proto-Planet were constructed, the marvel of modern technology for the Advent Dominion. The Age of the Second Dominion and the Great Cerberus War With the Second Dominion' security restored, dozens of domestic reforms were made by the ruling powers with the absence of the Hierarchy in common affairs having reduce himself inside his Fortress on Preah Adventos. The Military was reduced for the greater part of Its existence and semi-formal balance kept in constant check to prevent another internal crisis that has nearly crippled the Dominion as a whole. Perhaps as a way to prematurely reinstate the overall military control once more, they mobilized sometime before the Galactic Cerberus War and would provoke the War as for colonization and eradication purposes. The Second Dominion would be involved in the Galactic Cerberus War which they entered with the sole purpose of destroying the Federation. The original war plan was to allow the Raganork Regency, called Royal Advent by those in the upper-class lead by their Queen a chance to prove themselves worthy of Adventos and helmed the first invasion fleet that would consist of much of their own forces The Royal Advent Fleet exit into the Cerberus Galaxy and began a short term purge of Vasari colonies leading to the Coveran Republic Homeworld until the Federation interfered and after several clashes the Queen made a retreat based on calculations rather then military losses. The Vasari of Corveran joined the Federation as an allied power, relying on it for economic and political stability. The Royal Advent then discovered the Proto-Planet of IIos and established there forces here. However as the war dragged on the Royal Advent were deprived of Dominion reinforcements and communications was lost after the Royal Queen was captured by a joint Vasari-Federation operation helmet by Commander Harrison of the Marine Corps and Vasari 'Phase' of the Wing Division. After this event, the Royal Advent retreated to IIos and the conflict ended prematurely for the moment as the Federation celebrated the victory but was then forced to expend the Fleet in order to handle unrest in their own colonies such as horizon and ord daval. Due to this turn of events, the real plot of the Dominion was revealed by the surprise assault on the Federation Homeworld of Ord Radama by the Dominion 5th Fleet 'Harbingers of Salvation' lead by Primarch Na-Toth. The military prowess and the technology advantage over the Humans lead to a swift and brutal victory over Admiral Shepherd Forces, and the Capital World of Humanity burned like a bright star for many rotations. Ord Radama was considered radioactive, and should the humans find a way to make it habitable they would have to contend with the crystalline species, native to the Advent Dominion but was brought over to populate Radama was a countermeasures in the near future. The Second Dominion would have claimed victory in the Cerberus Conflict. But a majority of the Invasion Fleet splintered off after Na-Toth was assassinated by her second in command. When news of this reach back to Preah Adventos from Loyalist elements in the Fleets. The Hierarchy demanded reformation of the Dominion, and ordered the Sentinels to begin a purge of keyilitary individual and helm the military and fleet of the Dominion. The Purge of the Military destoryed the Second Dominion presumably but enabled the peaceful existence of the Third Dominion that in the Hierarchy own divine words was pure of essence and stability. It would helm the Advent society into new heights not troubled by Traitors or Powe hungry officials. By after the conflict, the second fell and the Third rose to preminance. How it established it's perfect society? It allowed the existence of the Royal Advent and Advent Separatist in the Cerberus Galaxy while promoting centralized and became an interstellar tribute goverment instead of direct control of the planets under its control. The Sentinels retained full military authority as they saw fit while the Conclave handled day-to-day affairs of the Dominion. The Third Dominion After the inter-fighting that had destroyed not only the First Dominion but alas the Second Dominion, the long absence of the Advent Hierarchy would come to an end. On Preah Adventos, the divine leader would appear and take his authority from all personal, from the Military, from the Conclave, even the High Templars of Adventos. He claimed that after eons of watching from afar, he was the only one fit enough to rule and keep the Advents from suducing themselves to petty affairs and kin-slaying. In his name, and of his proclamation. The Third 'Eternal' Advent Dominion was formed. The Largest & Strongest enity In the history of the Advent Race. During the rise of the Third Dominion, the Hierarchy ensured he had the complete loyality of the Fleet, Conclave, the Dominion Armies and the Sentinels. All Advent would come to worship the idol of Adventos in the sheer image of the Hierarchy himself - Wise, watchful, and patient were this Advent' equability that made him stand out from his kin. The Third Advent Dominion at the end of the Millennium is a society by the standards of the men and women that fit all their common needs. It is known that the period immediately following the formation was one of near-anarchy, and that the continuity of the Dominion was not assured though diplomacy as the Hierarchy dreamed, but though sheer force and brutality. In short, the Dominion had become a benevolent dictatorship ruled by the Hierarchy in person as he once did during the First Dominion, and the true sense of unity claimed their own reality. The Preparations for the Invasion